Barrett, P.H. 1977. The Collected Papers of Charles Darwin. Chicago, IL: U. of Chicago Press.

An anthology of letters, articles and observations, collected into a paperback volume.

Burkhardt, R.W., Jr. 1977. The Spirit of the System: Lamarck and Evolutionary Biology. Cambridge, MA: Harvard U. Press.

A thorough, fascinating study of Lamarck's biology. He did use the giraffe example, but Lamarck was not a vitalist, and this internalist/contextualist interpretation generates sound appreciation for his scientific abilities.

Bury, J.B. 1932[1955]. The Idea of Progress: An Inquiry into its Origin and Growth. New York: Dover.

In this classic Bury writes a form of intellectual history, tracing the development of the idea of progress from the Greeks through its relationship to the idea of evolution.

Butterfield, Herbert. 1931[1965]. The Whig Interpretation of History. New York: W.W. Norton.

Another classic, this one an essay on the advantages of "contextualist" versus "Whig" writing of history. According to Bury, "The study of the past with one eye, so to speak, upon the present is the source of all sins and sophistries in history." See also the first essay in George Stocking's book, Race, Culture and Evolution.

Cronin, Helena. 1991. The Ant and the Peacock: Altruism and Sexual Selection from Darwin to Today. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

In a compelling mix of history, philosophy and evolutionary biology, Cronin traces ideas about the roles of competition, altruism and sexual selection in the formation phenotypes, from 19th century debates between Darwin and Wallace to contemporary theory in behavioral ecology.

Darwin, Charles. 1845[1962]. The Voyage of the Beagle. Garden City, NY: Doubleday.

Graceful writing, keen observation and adventure; a naturalistic travelogue that is a pleasure to read.

Darwin, Charles. 1859[1871]. The Origin of Species and the Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex. New York: Random House.

An inexpensive (Modern Library) edition, which collects together the 6th edition of the Origin, and two of the three books that Darwin published in 1871. The Origin of Species is a brilliant piece of scientific writing, skillful in melding of fact, theory and necessary assumptions; Descent. . . and Selection. . . give the mature Darwin's views on human evolution, and sexual selection, respectively.

Darwin, Charles. 1871[1965]. The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals. Chicago, IL: U. of Chicago Press.

The third of Darwin's 1871 publications, this one arguing that continuity of emotional expression between humans and higher mammals, and more especially within the various races of human beings, is evidence that humans are to be included within the evolutionary process. Rich in ethological insights and methods, and not a little anthropocentrism.

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Eiseley, Loren. 1958. Darwin's Century. Garden City, NY: Doubleday.

Anthropology's poet/philosopher, author of numerous literate essays, here analyzes the men (yes) and ideas surrounding the 19th century discovery of evolution and natural selection. Says Young of this book, "a detective story...cleverly put together (in which)...contemporary contexts...are regularly sacrificed in favour of...scientific truth as seen in the light of current science." Whig to be sure, but very readable.

Fisher, Ronald A. 1930[1958]. The Genetical Theory of Natural Selection. New York: Dover.

One of the three efforts in the 1930s which resulted in the synthesis of Darwinian and Mendelian theory, producing Neo-Darwinism, or the modern (evolutionary) synthesis. See also Haldane and Wright.

Futuyma, Douglas J. 1983. Science on Trial: The Case for Evolution. New York: Pantheon.

A biologist writes about the challenge to evolution and especially the teaching of evolutionary ideas in public schools being mounted by the "scientific creationists".

Gould, Stephen Jay. 1977. Ever Since Darwin. New York: W.W. Norton.

The first collection of Gould's essays from Natural History Magazine (subsequent titles include: The Panda's Thumb, The Flamingo's Smile, Bully for Brontosaurus, Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes, and Eight Little Piggies). It is like a box of intellectual chocolates, very good chocolates, full of erudition, wit, theoretical substance representing the views of a humanist and evolutionist. Be aware though that Gould is an iconoclast, and sometimes diverges from the mainstream of evolutionary biology opinion.

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Haldane, J.B.S. 1932. (1966 ed.). The Causes of Evolution. Ithaca, NY: Cornell U. Press.

Another of the trilogy of works appearing in the early 1930s, synthesizing Darwinism and Mendelianism. See also Fisher and Wright.

Hofstadter, Richard. 1944[1955]. Social Darwinism in American Thought. Boston, MA: Beacon.

The standard historical analysis of the influence of social Darwinism in American life, with a focus on its ready acceptance and promulgation by academic and business leaders.

Huxley, Thomas H. 1863[1906]. Man's Place in Nature and Other Essays. New York: E.P. Dutton.

Huxley, himself an accomplished orator, writer and naturalist, was among the earliest and staunchist of Darwin's supporters. His book was among the first to make a thorough, convincing case for human evolution.

Irvine, William. 1955. Apes, Angels, and Victorians: Darwin, Huxley and Evolution. Cleveland, OH: World.

An historical account of the period which focuses on the Darwin-Huxley relationship, and on the public presentation and acceptance of evolutionary ideas.

Jacob, Francois. 1982. The Possible and the Actual. New York: Pantheon.

A superb essay on evolution and its philosophical implications by a molecular biologist and former Nobel Prize winner.

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Lewontin, R.C. 1974. The Genetic Basis of Evolutionary Change. New York: Columbia U. Press.

Lewontin is one of the best living evolutionary geneticists. He is a prolific researcher, self-avowed Marxist, and strong critic of sociobiology and what he sees as other biological reductionisms. This book is a non-political account of genetic variation.

Lovejoy, Arthur O. 1936[1960]. The Great Chain of Being: A Study of the History of an Idea. New York: Harper and Row.

Another "history of ideas." This one is the basic source on the Great Chain of Being, the organizational view of nature eventually replaced by Darwinian evolutionary views.

Malthus, Thomas R. 1798[1976]. An Essay on the Principle of Population. New York: W.W. Norton.

The essay, famous for vituperative critiques it stimulated from sources as diverse as Shelly and Engels, for its influence on Darwin and Wallace, and for its enduring value in highlighting what remains a major problem of our time.

Maynard Smith, John. 1982. Evolution Now: A Century after Darwin. San Francisco, CA: W.H. Freeman.

A collection of recent writings on evolutionary theory, most from the journal Nature and thus fairly technical.

Mayr, Ernst. 1963. Animal Species and Evolution. Cambridge, MA: Harvard U. Press.

The classic synthesis of macro-evolution, and especially of ideas on speciation, by one of the more lucid thinkers and writers on evolutionary biology.

Mayr, Ernst. 1976. Evolution and the Diversity of Life: Selected Essays. Cambridge, MA: Harvard U. Press.

Collected essays on evolutionary topics from sexual selection to teleology from a major figure in the field. Probably the most informative single book on this list. More recently Mayr has published a second collection of essays, equally good, titled Toward a New Philosophy of Biology (1988).

Milkman, Roger, ed. 1982. Perspectives on Evolution. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer.

An anthology of brief articles, meant as an update on research on a variety of evolutionary biology topics.

Ruse, Michael. 1979. The Darwinian Revolution. Chicago, IL: U. of Chicago Press.

Another historical sketch of the debates and controversies surrounding the publication of the Origin of Species.

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Sober, Elliott, ed. 1994. Conceptual Issues in Evolutionary Biology, 2nd ed. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Carefully selected essays -- the latest word -- on a wide variety of evolutionary topics ("Fitness," "Function and Teleology," "Adaptationism," "Units of Selection," "Essentialism and Population Thinking," etc.).

Stocking. G.C. 1968. Race, Culture and Evolution: Essays in the History of Anthropology. London: Collier-MacMillan.

Anthropology's only full time historian looks at the relationship between evolutionary ideas and the development of anthropology in the late 19th and early 20th century. Compare essay #1 to Bury, above.

Weiner, Jonathan. 1994. The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in our Time. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

Darwin thought evolutionary change to slow (gradual) to be observed. Contemporary evolutionary biologists are showing otherwise. This fascinating and gracefully written book by science journalist Jonathan Weiner documents work by the Grants (on finches in the Galapagos) and other researchers who are observing natural selection and evolution ‘as it happens.’

Williams, George C. 1966. Adaptation and natural Selection: A Critique of Some Current Evolutionary Thought. Princeton, NJ: Princeton U. Press.

Williams statement is that of a scientific conservative, trying to contain some of the sloppiness and error that has crept into evolutionary thinking in the last several decades. He is especially wary of the concept of adaptation, and strong on the argument that selection works at the level of the individual. William’s newer book, Natural Selection: Domains, Levels and Challenges (1992), is equally interesting but more difficult.

Wright, Sewall. 1930. Evolution in mendelian populations. Genetics 16: 97-159.

The third of the persons (see Fisher and Haldane) who formulated the Neo-Darwinian synthesis. Wright is the more mathematically abstruse of the group.

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